SRU organizers cancel Feb. 15 Chinese New Year celebration

Slippery Rock University’s Chinese New Year celebration scheduled for Feb. 15 at the Slippery Rock Township Municipal Building has been canceled.

Feb. 5, 2020

SLIPPERY ROCK, Pa. — The Chinese New Year celebration scheduled for Feb. 15 at the Slippery Rock Township Municipal Building has been canceled. The decision to cancel the event was made by its organizers out of respect for the people in China who are not able to celebrate the new year because of the coronavirus outbreak affecting the country.

The coronavirus outbreak, which began in Wuhan, China, has killed more than 425 people in China and infected more than 20,000 globally.

Chinese New Year is a more than 4,000-year-old tradition that observes the start of the new lunar year, which occurred Jan. 25 this year, and includes a "Spring Festival" that continues through Feb. 8. 2020 is the Year of the Rat, the first animal in the Chinese zodiac.

Organizers of the SRU celebration included the Chinese Culture Association and the Chinese Club at Slippery Rock University. The event was sponsored by SRU's College of Health, Engineering and Science and the Asian Studies program.

MEDIA CONTACT: Justin Zackal | 724.738.4854 | justin.zackal@sru.edu